Office of the District Attorney

P. David Soares
6 Lodge Street
Albany, New York 12207
(518) 487-5460
(518) 487-5093 FAX

ALBANY, NY – ALBANY, NY - District Attorney P. David Soares today announced the conclusion of a major, long term investigation resulting in the termination of a criminal enterprise which imported and distributed cocaine throughout Albany County. The investigation led to the arrest of 10 individuals on a series of drug trafficking charges. The individuals arrested are: JUAN P. MONTALVO [8/21/82], OMAR ASTACIO [6/6/80], JONATHAN GORDON [12/3/81], JOAN MANUEL, GANDO-RAMIREZ [12/24/81], YADIRA POLANCO [11/20/81], JEAN C. GONZALEZ [1/28/81], JOEY CORRETJER, JR. [1/25/83], MORRIS ALVAREZ [5/8/83], SEAN TORRES [6/1/80], and ANTHONY TORRES. They are currently in Albany County Jail without bail. They will be turned over to federal prosecutors.

FACTS OF THE CASE:

On the evening of January 5, 2007, a six month long term investigation spearheaded by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the New York State Police Community Narcotics Enforcement Team and the Albany County District AttorneyÕs Office culminated in the recovery of over a kilogram of cocaine and the apprehension of ten individuals responsible for the distribution of the cocaine to individuals in the Capital Region. These arrests were preceded by a long term investigation conducted with by members of the Capital District Drug Task Force including the Office of the United States Attorney General, the Albany Police Department, Watervliet Police Department and Colonie Police Department.

As a result of the investigation, law enforcement determined that a major narcotics distribution organization operating out of New York City was supplying drug dealers and users in the Capital Region with a large volume of crack and powder cocaine. In existence since at least the summer of 2006, the organization was headed by an individual identified as JUAN P. MONTALVO, a/k/a "CHINA".

The organization was marked by its sophisticated organization and business practices. In addition to MONTALVO, there was a management committee that included JONATHAN GORDON a/k/a "SMOKE" and OMAR ASTACIO a/k/a "O". This group, based in the Bronx, NY, coordinated that acquisition of the cocaine, its delivery to and distribution in the Capital District. They implemented policies for the sale of the cocaine in the Capital Region and administered the disbursement of proceeds to other members of the organization. The leaders of the organization also were responsible for supervising the day-to-day activities of the organization even while remaining removed from the actual sale of cocaine to customers.

To accomplish these goals, the organization established a satellite base at 6 Utica Avenue in the Town of Colonie, NY and staffed that base with employees. From that base, the "employees" solicited orders for cocaine over telephones and then filled the orders by delivering it in minivans to various locations throughout the region. The operation had been very successful: in just a four day span in December, 2006, the organization was able to sell approximately a kilogram of cocaine to various customers and gross approximately $30,000.

DA Soares stated today, "This is another step forward in the battle against organized crime and stopping the pipeline of drugs into the Capital District. You may recall an earlier investigation that resulted in the rounding up of the Jungle Junkies, and the addition of the Narcotics Eviction program which is designed to deny drug dealers with safe havens in which to do their business. Now, as a result of this investigation a major multi-million dollar criminal enterprise has been shut down."

Special Agent in Charge John Gilbride of the Drug Enforcement Administration stated "The Drug Enforcement Administration is committed to working with our federal, state and local counterparts to identify and dismantle drug trafficking organizations at every level. This violent organization's operation relied on transporting cocaine and crack from NYC and other States onto the streets of Albany. As a result of these arrests, Albany is a safer place to live free of crime and violence created by drug trafficking."

Soares also noted the organizational structure of the enterprise. "The success of this organization was achieved through discipline. The investigation established that employees were required to comply with organization polices, and failure to do so resulted in the imposition of fines," Soares said. Soares cited as an examples the fact that fines were levied for speeding tickets or for allowing minutes to expire on pre-paid cell phones. In addition, "bonuses" were withheld or doled out based on employee performance, including "Christmas Bonuses" payable in ounces of cocaine. Soares continued, "Not surprisingly, as with any successful enterprise, incentive and reprimand formed the basis for the organization's success. Sophisticated and complex, the narcotics distribution organization demanded an equally sophisticated and complex response from law enforcement, which was achieved in this case through the selfless cooperation of federal, state and local police.

ADA Francisco Calderone and Eric Galerneau of the Street Crimes Unit handled this case.

All the suspects are being arraigned today in Federal Court.